Environmental data

We report our data voluntarily to the HESA Estates Management Record. This data is reported without context and it can be difficult to assess universities’ performance without factors such as size, research intensity, construction activity and student accommodation ownership being taken into account.

The data reported below includes our HESA submission, but also additional information to help contextualise figures in the activity of the University.

Scopes 1 and 2 carbon emissions

Scope 1 emissions are those that we are directly responsible for, for example the emissions from our fleet of University vehicles and the gas we use in our boilers for heating buildings. Scope 2 emissions are mainly those produced through the generation of the electricty we use on campus.

Scopes 1 and 2 emissions are usually reported together.

Total emissions

Reporting through the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) requires the use of gross emissions using UK grid average carbon intensity.

Because the University purchases 100% renewable electricity, the gross (ie, grid-average) figures do not accurately portray the carbon intensity of our electricity supply. The net figures therefore highlight the contract-specific emissions associated with the University’s procured electricity. Over time (from when the contracts started in 2020), the gross and net figures reported will diverge so we include both figures to show the impact of our electricity purchasing choice on our carbon emissions.  

	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22
Gross (kgCO2e)	31,945,444	26,265,981	22,530,886	24,529,410	27,971,130
Net (kgCO2e)	31,945,444	26,265,981	22,530,886	17,252,000	17,090,000

Emissions per/m­­²

The University’s internal floor space has grown in recent years, but our emissions per/m­² continue to be one of the lowest in the Russell Group.

	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
M­­² internal space	539,787	541,966	540,037	541,216	516,434
Emissions per/m­² (kgCO2e)	59	48	42	32*	33*

*Calculated using Net carbon emissions, to reflect the University's renewable electricity supply.

Emissions per/£ income

The University’s research and teaching activities have continued to grow, but our emissions have fallen even while we are doing more.

	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Total Income (£)	691,755,000	715,700,000	737,556,000	744,013,000	822,397,000
Emissions per/£ income (kgCO2e)	0.046	0.037	0.031	0.023*	0.020*

*Calculated using Net carbon emissions, to reflect the University's renewable electricity supply.

Emissions per person

Our University community continues to grow, but we are emitting less carbon per person.

	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Total Students FTE	25,665	26,175	26,455	27,160	30,129
Total Staff FTE	6625	6845	7200	7020	7,950
Total Headcount	32,290	33,020	33,655	34,180	38,079
Emissions per head of campus population (kgCO2e)	989	795	669	504*	449*

*Calculated using Net carbon emissions, to reflect the University's renewable electricity supply.

Scope 3 emissions

Scope 3 emissions are all the other emissions produced indirectly as a result of our activity. There are 15 catagories of Scope 3 emissions identified by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol. The University is working to assess and measure these, but does not yet have data for all 15 categories.

Categories 1 and 2: Purchased Goods & Services and Capital Goods

Supply Chain Emissions; Categories 1 and 2 of annual Scope 3 emissions (tonnes of CO2e)
 

	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Business Services	26,012	33,450	16,779	35,900
Paper products	232	152	492	604
Other manufactured products	6,477	4,657	4,329	8,377
Manufactured Fuels	178	199	197	343
Food and catering	2,420	1,590	458	1,071
Information and communication	19,783	16,367	20,708	25,709
Medical and precision instruments	50,430	35,738	47,489	55,743
Other procurement	580	469	282	598
Construction (Category 2)	21,448	12,134	9,587	21,934
Annual Total	127,560	104,756	100,320	149,842

Category 6: Staff and Student Commuting

Staff commuting emissions (tonnes of CO2e)

	2016/17	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21
Tram	56	56	181	181	-
Train	141	141	63	63	-
Bus	186	186	353	353	-
Car	2,355	2,335	1,635	1,635	-
Total	2,738	2,718	2,232	2,232	-

Student commuting emissions (tonnes of CO2e)

	2016/17	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21
Tram	186	186	21	21	-
Train	533	533	363	363	-
Bus	161	161	439	439	-
Car	1,759	1,759	1,128	1,128	-
Total	2,639	2,639	1,951	1,951

 

Waste and recycling

The University produces a wide variety of waste, from normal office and commercial waste associated with most large organisations, to residential waste at our residences, food waste from our commercial outlets, and hazardous, clinical and radioactive waste related to research. These figures are for waste and disposal by tonnage; for Scope 3 emissions relating to waste, please see above.

Waste totals

Waste by source (tonnes)

We are committed to reducing the amount of waste produced from our activities and increasing the percentage of waste that is reused and recycled.
 
We collect and report on waste produced as a result of University activities holistically:

• Waste generated directly from our activities, for example waste generated on campus, at the AMRC, and from our commercial activities. Waste generated by the Students Union is also also included in this total.
• Waste generated indirectly from our activities, for example waste generated from residents at University managed accommodation and the waste generated by our construction activities.
• Other works waste is waste arising from capital works, for example construction activities. These works can have a large impact on our waste arisings and the years where we have undertaken significant capital construction and refurbishment projects result in a significant increase in waste arisings (for exmaple in 2017/18 and 2018/19). We only report these waste arising in the Other Works category.

We chose to take this approach to reporting as it provides a complete account of our activities and impact.
 

	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Non-residential waste	1,950	3,706	1,325	1,089	1,514
Residential waste	583	705	434	523	530
Other works waste	34,036	67,068	1,796	3,113	671
Total	36,570	71,480	3,556	4,727	2,715

Waste disposal

Non-residential waste: direct waste from institutional activities (tonnes)

Our policy is to only send waste to landfill when we are legally obliged, for example asbestos. The table below provides an overview of the organisation’s performance, listed in order of environmental preferability.

	2017/18	2018/19*	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Recycled	717	669	381	371	483
Composted	72	75	79	113	108
Anaerobic digestion	113	103	47	34	50
Energy recovery	941	1,199	739	498	793
Landfilled	84	1,623	51	25	28
Incinerated without energy recovery	21	35	48	26	52
Total waste generated	1,950	3,706	1,325	1,089	1,514

Performance (tonnes)

	2017/18	2018/19*	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Total waste generated	1,950	3,706	1,347	1,069	1,514
Total recycled / recovered	1,844	2,047	1,247	1,018	1,434
Total disposed of to landfill or without energy recovery	105	1,658	99	51	70
Percentage of waste recycled / recovered	94.6%	55.2%	92.6%	95.2%	94.7%

*In 2018/19 a substantial amount of asbestos was found during a building demolition, which legally has to be sent to landfill. This is why our landfill total for this year is much higher than the long terms average.

Residential waste: indirect waste from student accommodation (tonnes)

The University owns and manages residential accommodation. Our residents are provided with general waste bins, recycling bins and food waste bins, which means all the waste generated by our residents is diverted from landfill. 

	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Recycled	197	241	137	162	152
Anaerobic digestion	17	28	20	16	26
Energy recovery	370	437	277	345	352
Total waste generated	583.3	706	434.3	523	530

Travel and transport

Commuting emissions avoided

Through our Betterpoints app, we reward staff and students for taking sustainable transport decisions to and around campus. Below is the amount of carbon emissions avoided by app users since its launch in 2019.

	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23
Number of Active BetterPoints App Users	1,782	1,014	1,349	1,448
Total CO2 avoided (tonnes of CO2e)	331	150	249	394
Bus Distance (miles)	113,564	47,696	149,095	262,789
Walk Distance (miles)	486,458	267,185	411,229	611,898
Cycle Distance (miles)	148,824	67,428	90,247	137,748
Tram Distance (miles)	22,281	6,428	25,206	57,191
Train Distance (miles)	234,957	100,030	382,375	636,752
Run Distance (miles)	45,324	25,373	27,709	36,611

Support for cycling 

Cycle parking spaces

We’re continuing to add secure cycle storage to our campus, such as our secure cycle hub.

2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
2,200	2,609	2,609	2,609	2,683

Cycle Hut use

Our Cycle Hut provides free bike checks and at-cost servicing and repairs for staff and students. Below are the number of repairs and services undertaken each year.

2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
693	782	417	297	472

Electric vehicle charging points

Electric vehicle charging points

2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
18	22	29	32	56

Fleet

Fleet decarbonisation

We are continuing to decarbonise our fleet through the introduction of electric and hybrid vehicles where possible.

The University operates a number of larger and specialist vehicles, such as tractors, refrigerated units and trucks with tail lifts, which it is currently not possible to replace with electric vehicles. When these vehicles come to the end of their operational life they are being replaced with Euro 6 Class (low emission) vehicles.

As of February 2023, of the 23 vehicles in the fleet not electric or hybrid, 15 have Euro 6 Class engines.

	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22	2022/23
Total fleet	73	73	56	52
Electric and hybrid	25	31	28	29
Percent of total	34%	43%	50%	56%

 

Water

Water consumption

Total water consumption 

The University of Sheffield owners and operates its own student halls of residence, meaning our total consumption can look higher than comparative institutions which do not own and operate accommodation. Both non-residential (ie offices, labs etc), and residential figures are included here.

	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Non- residential (m³)	313,246	295,305	247,484	193,842	225,378
Residential (m³)	168,963	138,434	151,667	178,965	193,516
Total (m³)	482,209	433,739	399,151	372,808	418,894

Water consumption per head of campus population

	2017/18	2018/19	2019/20	2020/21	2021/22
Total Students FTE	25,665	26,175	26,455	27,160	30,129
Total Staff FTE	6625	6845	7200	7020	7,950
Total Headcount	32,290	33,020	33,655	34,180	38,079
Water consumption per head of campus population (litres per person per year)	15,026	13,135	11,860	10,907	11,000
Water consumption per head of campus population (litres per person per day)	41	36	32	30	30